The Wedding Chase by Rebecca Kelley Read Free Book Online Page A

darted out the door, nearly colliding with Lady Selby’s ample purple mass in the hallway.
    “Zelda! That’s Northcliffe’s room. Why is Lyndon in there?” Lady Selby’s eye for scandal was as sharp as a hawk’s eye for a field mouse supper. “Why were you in there?”
    Zel took the puffy old hand in hers, hoping to slow the woman down. “No need to worry, Northcliffe is fine. A wound reopened and needed to be stitched. I assisted the physician.”
    “You assisted Lyndon?” Her jowls and voice quavered. “Are you sure Northcliffe is not badly injured?”
    “Several days ago he was set on by footpads and not properly attended to afterward. He swears he is well enough to come down for dinner.”
    “Oh dear, I am so pleased he is well. I would not want anyone taking ill at my home.” She clasped Zel’s arm and whispered conspiratorily. “Zelda, you shouldn’t be in his room.”
    “I was assisting the doctor,” Zel repeated firmly.
    “Zelda, this isn’t really the time—” Lady Selby hesitated, “but Northcliffe is not the type of man for you. Your aunt will never forgive me.… His reputation is dreadful. He is not accepted in the best circles.” Her voice lowered further. “He could not be truly interested in you, not in a respectable way. He usually consorts with married women. Ifyou don’t watch out, you could end up broken-hearted and ruined.” When Zel tried to break away she held on tighter. “It is said he has vowed not to marry. And when he inherited his title less than a year ago, there were stories about his family and how he got the title.” Lady Selby looked about, whispering, “Mysterious deaths, sudden illnesses, carriage accidents.”
    “I know nothing of stories, nor do I put faith in gossip and rumor.” She looked at the door she had just exited. “If he is such a scapegrace, why did you invite him?”
    Lady Selby pulled Zel farther down the hallway. “His dear grandmother is my friend, and I would never snub her kin. He is also a close friend of the duke of Ridgemont.”
    Zel jerked her arm free and faced the woman. “And you wish to curry favor with the illustrious duke.”
    “My dear, you know I have granddaughters entering the marriage mart, and any connection with His Grace—”
    “You tolerate Northcliffe to cultivate Ridgemont.”
    “My dear, you are such an innocent for one of your years. Northcliffe is exciting but dangerous. You must avoid him. He is not suitable company for naive, unmarried females.”
    “As a mature woman of six and twenty, I know my own mind. If I choose to be a friend to Northcliffe, I do so on my own assessment of his character.” Zel lifted her chin. “And if I choose to have a mild flirtation with the man, it will not go beyond what I can control.”
    “What’th the man doing?” Melbourne’s whining drawl moved higher in query. “Dangling after Mith Fleetwood, and what’th thith about a knife wound?” He crossed his orange satin-covered legs, settling in the plush chair.
    Wilmington John Wilborn Hawthorne, earl of Newton, allowed a slight smile to touch his lips. “Lady Selby claims he was attacked by footpads several days back. As for Miss Fleetwood, I would never have given her a second glance.”He bent his thin form before the library window, but he barely saw the terraced garden below. “Northcliffe has singled her out, and as his taste rarely errs, I believe a second glance may be warranted.”
    “Newton, you are becoming positively shortsighted. The woman is a dowd, and as tall as a man.” Isadora’s normally smooth tones carried an unaccustomed edge. “Wolfgang must be bored to be playing with her. This country life’s too tame for his blood.” She ran her tiny fingers along a row of books, the movement too rapid to be seeking reading material.
    “If he’th bored, why ithn’t he theeking your company, Lady Horeton?” Melbourne twittered.
    “He will be.” She pulled at the top of her gown revealing more of